GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WZZM) -- The parents of the student who died, Dominique Nolff, of Middleville are trying to understand how the college sophomore was targeted in this shooting.

Dominique's step-mother and his father are still in shock, and as far as they knew, Dominique was never involved in gangs or drugs.

His family says he had an academic scholarship at MSU.
Friends called him D-J, and say he was funny, outgoing and very protective of his friends and family.

"That boy was on the right track. He never grew up with any violence. He wasn't with no violence. He never grew up with no bad people or none of that. That's why I don't understand why they came up there and did that to him?" said his step-mother, Tawana Smith.

Smith says she just saw him over Christmas break and says nothing seemed different about him.